At the Hearth
by Layne Muffins
Summary: Matthew's always had a crazy family, but for this he is grateful. For this he is happy. And he knows he is blessed, despite the hardhsips and trials his quaint family has faced. /Canada, America, England, France, Seychelles, Greenland. FACE Family.\


**A.N . Um. So I'm taking Advanced Placement United States History. And wow. All of the references. All of them. A while back we learned about "New France" or rather, Canada. And I was so excited when he came into play. During class, I wrote this, because I really love Canada so much. Thought, hey, why not post it. So here you are.**

**Oh. I wrote it originally on 9.17.12**

"Who are you?"

That was the first time Mathieu Bonnefoy was asked that question. He was newly discovered (and that repeated question has yet ceased to be asked in all his two-hundred-plus years of existence).

"I'm Canada."

"Canadia?" The little boy blinked, crystalline eyes shining. He was young, like Mathieu, and had similar features. His hair, blonde as well, was a shade darker than his though, and didn't have a French Aristocratic wave to it. The boy was all smiles.

"I'm America!" he beamed, extending a hand to Mathieu before he could correct the boy. "We're here on this continent together. So that makes us brothers! Okay? I'll be your big, protective brother! I'll be your hero!"

Mathieu suppressed a chuckle and shook hands with the boy. Perhaps in the future they would become closer. Perhaps real brothers.

* * *

"Who are you?"

This time it wasn't the charismatic boy Mathieu had met near Detroit. Rather, this time it was a little girl.

She had honey-blonde hair tickling her forearms and sapphire blue eyes. A passive frown was etched on her lips, but her cool eyes were friendly. Circled around her feet, an arctic fox. Kumajirou growled defensively, but the fox just opened one eye sleepily before returning to its slumber.

"I'm Canada."

"I'm Greenland." She smiled, extending a hand. Cautiously, he took it and gave a tiny smile. Already Canada could tell that they had a lot in common; a chilly climate, trusted companions, and far away daddies. "Who's your big brother?"

"You mean Papa?" Canada inquired, titling his head in confusion. "France!" He grinned, thinking of his hair-brained, yet loving father. He had grown quite fond of the Frenchman and couldn't stand to see the injuries America's daddy inflicted on him. "Who's your daddy?"

"Don't really have a 'daddy'." She shrugged. "It's hard to tell. Meester Erikson and Iceland found me, but claimed me for Norway. But now Denmark wants me. And let me tell you, not one of them is the 'daddy' type. I'd sooner call them brothers than my father."

Canada chuckled and decided that he liked this quaint girl. "I'm afraid I don't know who any of those countries are."

"It's okay. They're all crazy anyways." She laughed, running a hand through the snowy fur of her fox.

"We're part of the same continent." Canada mused, recalling what the quaint American had told him. "That makes us siblings. I'll be your brother."

"Then I'll be your sister!" She beamed. "I'm used to having so many brothers, but you seem relatively nice and calm and normal, so you'll be a nice change." She laughed and it was a lovely sound like chimes in the breeze. "Hey. What's your bear's name?"

"Kuma... Kuma… Kuma-something."

"Hahah! You don't even remember? Well this is Aka. She likes sleeping." Greenland gestured to the snoozing fox at her feet, giggling as the fox opened one eye and flicked her master's leg with her bushy white tail.

Canada smiled and tightened the scarf around his neck, the winter air crisp and chilling against his skin. This was a new feeling. This was a happy feeling. To belong to a family.

* * *

"Who are you?"

"I'm Canada."

"My new brother!" the petite girl exclaimed, flashing a toothy grin. She had satin skin the color of rich caramel, large chocolate eyes and tangled locks, neatly parted into two ponytails, held in place with scarlet bows. "Papa was telling me about you!"

"R-Really?" Canada asked, cocking his head. He was often forgotten, rarely so by his father, but even then his papa hardly talked of him. The small girl nodded, smiling all the while.

"I've never had a family before! This is so nice!" The girl mused, batting her long eyelashes. "Oh! I'm Seychelles!"

Mathieu thought over her words. With a chuckle, he realized that he'd always had someone to call his family; it was something that warmed his heart. And his new sister was a welcome addition.

"What do you mean you're switching fathers?!" Greenland gasped, locking her azure eyes unto Canada's violet ones. She glared at him a moment more before cuddling her chin into Aka who snoozed on her lap.

They were older now, ten or so. Canada was sporting a blue button-up, a black vest and olive-green shorts with ankle socks and black dress shoes. Kumajirou nuzzled into his side as he absentmindedly picked at the grass. Greenland was wrapped up in a long sleeve blue tunic with leather boots, a large belt resting on her hips. Her long hair had been chopped short and thrown messily into a ponytail. They sat side-by-side on a hilltop, the summer air a warm and pleasant change from their normal cold weather.

"I mean, that's just the rumors. America keeps telling me that his daddy is gonna take me away from France. But I like France. He's a nice papa." Canada pouted, plucking a petal from a yellow daisy.

Greenland said nothing but furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. "Oh. Canada?"

"Yeah?"

"What's your name?"

Canada blinked in confusion at the strange question. "Mathieu Bonnefoy."

"Nivikka Køhler." She nodded in response. "But not that long ago, I was Nivikka Bondevik. And I'm technically not supposed to be Køhler, but Norway's forgotten about me, and really, it's not like I can blame him. I'm just so far away and so not important to his economy or kingdom-" She stopped midsentence, wiped away what could have been a stray tear and glanced back up at Mathieu. "The point being, you won't be Bonnefoy for long, will you?"

Canada said nothing, but buried his face into Kuma's side, stifling a sob. He couldn't deal with this conflict anymore and finally broke down into tears, weeping into his polar bear's fur.

"Oh, Canada." Greenland croaked, wrapping the small boy in her arms, whispering a Danish lullaby. When Canada felt his should grow damp, he knew that his sister shared his trauma and shared his pain.

"Thank you." Mathieu sniffed. "Thank you for always being my sister."

* * *

"Papa! Papa!" Canada wailed, desperately reaching out for his father as a man yanked on his wrist, pulling him further and further away from his father. "Papa!"

But Francis Bonnefoy made no move to come and rescue his son. He only remained slumped in that posh, red chair, weeping into his hands.

Canada cast a look up towards his captor and met emerald eyes. They were almost sympathetic.

"Papa!"

* * *

"I miss Papa." Seychelles sniffed, brown eyes watering. "At least you're here with me."

"Sey?" Canada piped, taking the hand of his little sister, now claimed territory for the British Empire as well. "Will you sing me Papa's lullaby?"

"Of course, _mon frère."_ She cleared her throat and smiled as Canada rested his head on her lap. Gingerly, she began to run her fingers through his hair, just as France had down when lulling them to sleep so long ago.

"_L'était une une petite poule grise__**  
**__Qu'allait pondre dans l'église.__**  
**__Pondait un p'tit' coco__**  
**__Que l'enfant mangeait tout chaud."_

Seychelles had a silky, beautiful voice. Matthew gave a hearty yawn, eyes closing before she even began the second stanza. He clung desperately to the fading words of a beloved lullaby, missing his Papa more than ever.

But Seychelles was here with him, and for that he was grateful.

"_Bonne nuit, mon frère."_

* * *

"Who are you?"

Canada winced at the question. Hearing it made him miss Greenland, who never forgot who he was. (She claimed it was because she was used to mousy, quite relatives like her sister Svalbard, but Canada was appreciative either way.)

"I'm Canada."

"Oh, yeah! You're Canadia! And I'm your bestest brother ever. I'm your hero!" America gave a boisterous laugh, latching himself unto Mathieu.

Matthew.

He had to correct himself. No longer Mathieu Bonnefoy, but now Matthew Kirkland.

"Matthew Kirkland?"

"Yeah."

"Wow. I miss your French name." Greenland sighed, frowning as she shoved her fists into her red jacket.

"Me too." Canada muttered, kicking snow with his boot. "Alfred's a jerk."

"Who?"

"America."

"Ah."

"And England ignores me, but they're family, ya know? And you have to love your family. It's law. I think." Canada chuckled darkly.

"I get it. I get it. Like, Faroe's a sarcastic jerk. And Ice can be a bit too stiff at time. Nor's too cold and aloof. Sve scares me! And Fin… well, actually Fin's really nice! Hehe. Sval… I sometimes forget she's there. But she's a sister and when you're one of three girls in this crazy Scandinavian house, you stick together. And the twins. Mischievous and always putting snow in your pants." Greenland laughed, Aka running between her legs, often nosing Kuma in the side in an attempt to initiate a game of chase. "And then there's Denmark. Den… he's quite the character." Canada chewed on his cheek and he could've sworn that Nivikka was blushing. "But despite how crazy they are, you love them anyways. Because they're family."

"Yeah." Canada cast a glance at the pale sky, violet eyes refracting light beautifully. "Hey. Nii?"

"Mm?"

"Are we family?"

"Of course, ya dork!" Nivikka laughed, shaking her head. "That's a silly question. You're my bro. We don't have to be connected by fathers or brothers or political rulers. You've always been there for me. We're family."

Canada grinned, glancing over at the Scandinavian ruled country. She truly was so special to him. She'd always been there, and while they weren't related in the way he and Alfred were, she would be his sister, his dearest sibling.

"Kay. Thanks."

* * *

"Who are you?"

Canada sighed, trying his hardest not to frown in disappointment.

"Wait! You're Canada! Duh! Silly me!" America laughed, shaking his head, cyan eyes ablaze with laughter.

"How's Dad?" Matthew asked. The light in Alfred's eyes died immediately, and uncharacteristic frown pulling at his lips. "Al?!"

"Oh, Mattie." Alfred wailed, latching onto his brother. They really had grown close in the years they had been together. Alfred's pain was Matthew's. "Oh, Mattie." America choked on a sob and gave a low whine.

"Alfred? What's wrong?"

"I-I've come to a decision." He growled, taking a step back. He wiped away the tears with the heels of his hands and when he met Canada's eyes, there were fiery with pained determination. "I'm going to fight for my independence."

"What?! Why?!" Canada gasped, stumbling back in shock.

"I don't expect you to understand; you've always been so peaceful and calm. But this is something I have to do. Maybe one day you'll understand. Matt, just promise me one thing." Alfred pleaded, gripping his brother's shoulders.

"Anything."

"That no matter what, we'll always be family."

There was a pause. "Always."

* * *

"So what is it now?" Greenland asked, sliding out of her thick jacket to hang it on the rack by the front door. She glanced once around Canada's cabin and settled on a plush loveseat.

"Matthew Williams."

"Ah." She nodded, crossing her legs as Aka joined her on the sofa. "How was he?"

"Arthur wasn't all the surprised, really. I think he'd been expecting it, ya know?" Matthew hummed, offering Nii a cup of warm tea.

She took a careful sip and frowned. "No, actually, I wouldn't."

"Oh. Yeah. Sorry." Matthew winced, recalling that Greenland was still under Danish rule.

"Nah. It's cool. But I did change my last name. I couldn't take being Køhler any longer." She laughed awkwardly, pushing her glasses up her nose. Matthew smirk, housing the suspicion of his sister's romantic feelings towards her ruling country. But he said nothing, chuckling lightly. "It's Bødker."

They were older now. Matthew had stretched taller, remaining thin with his French Aristocratic look. His wavy, golden hair now tickled his chin and violet eyes were hidden behind round spectacles. Nii had thinned out -if that was possible- but kept her hair short and choppy, usually tossed back into that messy ponytail.

"That's good." Canada laughed watching Greenland turn red with amusement.

"Mmhmm."

"Hey, Nii?"

"Yeah?"

"Thought I'd just say, thanks." She shot him a shocked glance, but chuckled lightly and smiled.

* * *

"_Bonjour, mon fils!" _Francis beamed, setting his winter coat on the rack by the cabin's front door. "_Joyeux No__ë__l!" _

"_Joyeux No__ë__l, papa."_ Matthew smiled, greeting his father with a hug. "Thank you for coming."

"Always, _mon petite._ Always." The Frenchman smiled, ruffling Canada's hair before moving to sit by the fireplace.

"Merry Christmas, _mon fr__é__re._" Seychelles grinned, following in after Francis, tackling her brother in a warm embrace. Even now, her chocolate hair was into its usual tangled mess, scarlet ribbons and all. She thrust a wrapped box his way and joined Francis on the couch, taking kindly to the heat radiating from the fireplace. Her native home was known for its tropical climate, and the islandic girl had not taken well to the Canadian weather.

"Hey, Matt. I'm coming in!" Rang out the familiar voice a quirky Greenlandic girl as she ushered into the cabin, arms full of presents. "_Gl__æ__delig Jul!" _She laughed, dumping the packages onto the dinner table.

"Nii, you know that none of us speak Danish." Canada sighed, watching as Kuma rushed to greet Aka.

"_Juullimi Ukiortaassamilu Pilluarit."_ She countered, smirking at Matthew as she tossed her jacket on the rack, slumping down on the loveseat.

"Or Greenlandic Inuit." Canada rolled his eyes, chuckling. "You know, I've always been jealous that you're able to fluently speak three languages."

"Psh. I can only use Greenlandic Inuit in Greenland and Danish in my home and at Denmark's house."

"Well where am I going to use French besides Canada and France?!"

"Switzerland."

"Shut up, Nii." The Greenlander chuckled and the sound of it made Canada smile; she hardly laughed anymore.

"Merry Christmas!" Boomed a voice as the front door was thrown open.

"Al! Arthur!" Canada rushed to greet his brother and father. "Thank you so much for coming!"

"Of course. What else is family for?" Arthur coughed, smiling sheepishly.

Canada smiled at those words.

_Of course. What else is family for?_

He watched over his fickle, mix-matched family members as they gathered around at the hearth. He couldn't help but grin. As odd as they were, they were his family. And he couldn't think of anyone else he'd want here with him now.

**A.N. Greenland is an OC of mine. Yup. And yesterday was Lief Erickson day! My gorgeous Greenland was discovered by a Norwegian from Iceland! Claimed for Norway (Iceland was under Norwegian rule), Greenland went under dual rule as Norway entered into the Kalmer Union with Denmark. When the Union fell, it was Denmark who took her. Because he loves her. ;w; And yes. Want to learn more about Greenland as an OC? Check out my deviantArt. And my upcoming fic, "The Girl of Ice."**

**Anywhoodles. **

**Yesh. Cheesy ending for Canadian happiness. Yay. c:**


End file.
